UUFSMA: “What Sustains Me? Beauty, Art and Connectedness”

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Zoom Virtual Service

“What Sustains Me? Beauty, Art and Connectedness”
Speakers: Paula Peace and Cathy Cánepa

Sunday, July 19, 2020
10:30 am

Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/414604040 

Password: 294513

By Joseph Plummer

UUF Secretary

In this era of social distancing, we cling to family and close friends for support. How else can one be sustained? In this Sunday’s online service of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of San Miguel de Allende, fellowship members Paula Peace and Cathy Cánepa share their personal sources of sustenance and remind us of resources we can all access. In music, dance, and meditation, the service will speak to our hearts.

The arts provide a sturdy bridge to the magic and mystery of the universe, rewarding any consumer or participant. Written poetry and prose, creations in visual media, bodies dancing through space, and sounds in time creating music all offer resources to sustain and connect us.

“What sustains me is the art of music,” Paula Peace says. “Through beautiful music, I feel connected to others’ pathos, ecstasy, and passion — an entire range of human emotion. A great composer can connect my heart to all human hearts, the energy of the universe, and, one could say, to the divine love of one’s god or goddess.”

Pianist Paula Peace performed for almost four decades with the Atlanta Chamber Players, in hundreds of concerts, radio broadcasts, and educational programs in more than 150 cities in the US, Europe, and Mexico. In 2016 the State of Georgia granted her the Governor’s Award in the Arts.

“Among the things that sustain me,” says Cathy Cánepa, “are dance, science and the vision of a solidaristic human community. My mother, a dancer, and my father, a painter, were deeply spiritual atheists, raising me with reverence for nature and beauty, the arts, and commitment to an egalitarian society. These values sustain my life.”

A retired psychiatrist and psychotherapist, Dr. Cathy Cánepa trained and worked with underserved populations in NYC, working on Jacobi Hospital’s Monolingual Hispanic Inpatient Psychiatric Unit and later as Director of the St. Vincent’s Partial Hospital Program.

Joan Wolf, a Buddhist in the Thich Nhat Hahn tradition, will also offer a guided meditation.

Chilean musician Yaya Fuentes will share mesmerizing music performed on the hang, an instrumental cousin to the steel drum.

To participate in our online Sunday Service, visit the Fellowship’s website at www.uufsma.org and click on the Zoom Service button displayed on the home page. If requested, enter password: 294513. Sign-in between 10:15-10:25 am.

Through grants and awards, UUFSMA donates fifty percent of all income it receives to support nonprofit organizations that provide health, educational, and environmental services for underserved communities in the San Miguel region. Please support this work by clicking on the website home page’s Donate button. Your support is essential.

Due to the arrival of the coronavirus in San Miguel de Allende, UUFSMA has indefinitely suspended in-person Sunday services and other gatherings. We advise members and friends to follow the advice of reputable public health authorities and to contact our Minister or Care Team for needed assistance. The UU Fellowship welcomes people of all ages, races, religions, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

Our fellowship was born in 1987 when a small group of expatriate religious liberals came together to meet as Unitarian Universalists in San Miguel de Allende. The fellowship has been active and thriving ever since. Every UU church has it’s own flavor, and we are no exception. We are a combination of expats and visitors, each actively engaged and contributing to this wonderful Mexican community we love. Because there is a coming, going, and returning aspect, our spiritual community is extremely fluid.  There is a magic in San Miguel which draws us in and binds us together—both as members of the church and of the larger community. Our programming is led by visiting ministers, community leaders, and church members, so the variety is lively. We have opportunities to meet as UU’s each week at discussion groups, breakfasts, luncheons, and in various other ways. Depending on the season, attendance fluctuates between 40 and 140. Our primary focus is on funding social action within the surrounding community. We love good music, good discussion, good food, and having visitors. We invite you to join us any Sunday morning.

Members regularly post updates and information on this site. We also post meeting minutes and announcements there.

To join our Yahoo group site click on this link:

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/UUFSMA/info

Click on “membership”and follow the directions.

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